Cisco Profits Up, But Murky Outlook Drags Stock Down

Cisco touted a 37% increase in its first-quarter profits, but it wasn’t enough on Wall Street to overcome a pessimistic outlook for the company's current quarter. The network equipment maker said its revenue-growth forecast of $9.79 billion will fall just short of the $9.81 billion most analysts expected. The news depressed the stock by 9% in after-hours trading, MarketWatch reports.

“Looks pretty solid,” said one analyst, who added that “investors were expecting more.”  Cisco did have good news: During its fiscal first quarter, which ended Oct. 27, it boosted revenue by 17%, Reuters reports, partly on the strength of new products. But another analyst warns the company will need to “work hard to maintain growth” to fend off rival Juniper Networks. (More Cisco stories.)